I once said that
putting comprised about 25% of my game. Drives are 40-50% of my game simply
because most holes can be reached from the tee. Yes, it all comes down
to the putt, but you must be able to set yourself up nicely for the putt.
And that takes power and accuracy off the tee. What should beginners focus
on, distance or accuracy? Beginners should always focus on control. Once
you have control you can out more power into the shot. But if all you
have is distance it's harder to learn accuracy. So, buckle up for my driving
school!

A BRIEF POWER PRIMER
Powerful drives are generated by the major muscle groups: legs, hips, back,
and shoulders. Let the bigger muscles move the smaller muscles. The transfer
of weight and energy will be more efficient.

You really don't
want to hold back on any shot. When a pro golfer plays he is trying to
hit full clubs, meaning he is taking full swings as mush as possible and
making the club change match the distance. I try to do the same. I try
to make a full throw as much as possible. If the hole is 100 yards, I'll
be throwing 75-100%.

DISC SELECTIONHow many drivers do
players need? If you play a variety of courses that present a multitude
of situations, you need seven to eight discs to cover all situations: a
long range hyzer driver, a long range turnover, medium range hyzer, flat,
and turnover drivers, plus your short range discs and a roller.

For shorter drives,
I throw Rocs. In the 350' range, I throw my longer rocs or short-range
Firebirds. It depends on the angle and the trees. At 400 feet, I'm throwing
KC Teebirds and the new CE teebirds.

I've always felt
larger discs (180g size) glide a little better than their smaller competitors.
But, then the Cyclone came out and it glides very well. The Gazelle also
glides very well. You can put more rotation on a smaller disc and they
are also faster. So today, you're better off throwing the smaller discs
for distance.

For beginners choose
stable to understable discs such as Stingrays, panthers, or wolves. I
do not recommend beginners choosing overstable drivers such as Firebirds,
Banshees or Vipers.

One more tip on
disc selection: a lot of players don't take into account the "out-and-around"
length when choosing a disc. Say a hole is 320 feet with no straight path
to it. You may have to throw 40 feet around to clear the obstacles. The
disc has to travel 40 more feet coming back to the basket so now the hole
is actually 400 feet. On holes where you have to go out and around, choose
the longer discs.

WRIST BEND AND GRIPIn general,
the bend in my wrist matches the amount of power needed for the shot. If
I only am throwing 50%, then the wrist is 50% cocked etc. If I'm going to
throw as hard as I can, then my wrist will be curled to the fullest. Not
cocking too much on the shorter shots creates more control. It's progressive
all the way down to the putt, where I don't cock my wrist.

Grip pressure goes
along with the same thinking. Short drives require a firmer grip than
putts. With longer drives I'm gripping hard. You need to grip harder because
when you are twisting and turning and moving fast you don't want the disc
to slip out.

PREPARING TO THROWWhat should you be thinking
about before the tee shot? Only the conditions: your footing, the tees,
OB, the turf (will it make the disc skip?), and wind. You want to be a ware
of all the factors that are going to make your disc move. Also you want
to visualize the shot within these conditions. Whatever your favorite way
to work a disc is (hyzer, anhyser, or flat), you need to see the disc thrown
perfectly through the given airspace.

Get your body in
line on the tee pad depending on the type of throw. Come at the tee at
an angle. If you're for an anhyzer drive, you're starting at the right
rear corner and your body and disc will end up in the front left corner
of the tee pad. For a hyzer shot, you're starting at the left rear corner
and your body and disc are going to end up at the right front corner.
This is key in getting a good shot going. Your creating the angle you
desire. If a straight shot is the best route, I'll start with a touch
of hyzer to prevent the disc from flipping over and go straight down the
middle of the tee.

On an anhyzer shot,
don't bend at the waist. Arch high in the back under your shoulder blades.
This gets your shoulders lined up for the left-to-right downward motion
of a turnover. In a hyzer, your bring your arm upward.

Here's on more tip
on disc angle: any time you introduce an angle to a drive, the disc will
be more difficult to control. The hyzer drive is the most controllable
simply because it is not changing an angle. But learning to throw a disc
flat is one of the most important skills for any golfer to learn. All
of the possible turns and variations are only slight angles. If you want
to hyzer, you change it slightly one way. If you want to turn it over,
you change it slightly the other way.

THE DRIVE
The last three steps are the most important for the set-up and run-up. For
the right-hander, it would be the right foot setting up for the left foot
to go behind, then the right foot going forward and planting. You'd be amazed
how far you can throw if you get these three steps in sync.

The initial step
before you drag your left foot behind the other sets up the power turn.
When you put the left foot behind, your hips and shoulders rotate to the
left. That's when you reach back with your arm. The more you can twist
and reach back, the more potential power and speed you are going to have
moving forward. As you are doing your approach, you're pretty straight,
but as you are coiling, lower your body a bit. You can't get much power
if your legs are completely straight.

Footwork is your
base power source and the uncoiling of power moves quickly upward and
slightly forward: your legs power or hips, and your shoulders power your
arms. It's an uncoiling of all your muscles together. That's where you
get booming drives - when all the muscles explode as a unit.

A lot of players
throw outside their body - they pull their arms around their body fully
straightened.. If you would stop that motion halfway through when your
arm is straight in front of you and attempt to pull start a lawn mower,
you would have no power. Instead start the power down deep and pull across
your stomach or chest as you would normally start a lawnmower.

BALANCE AND FOLLOW
THRUGood balance is key
to any golf shot. It all starts with your head. A lot of people drop their
heads or yank it over when doing a turnover. When your head moves, your
torso moves, throwing you off balance. Slow don and achieve balance and
power. I try to keep my head as centered and stable as possible. On the
long shots my head is naturally going to turn away for a split second. When
I'm pulling through, my head is up and this keeps the back straight. If
I'm throwing a big hyzer I might drop the head a little. I try to keep my
eyes on the target area as long as possible.

Right-handers can
get the proper feel of correct follow-through by executing a left-handed
baseball swing. Your wrists have to let go and pull over, turning your
forearms to the sky because the bat is coming through. You're not going
to be able to stop your wrists. This is the same type of felling you should
have in disc golf. It's a release of the muscles. You need to extend outside
the body after release.

TOUGH DRIVING CONDITIONS
Low ceiling tight holes that are fairly long (over 100 yards) are some of
the most demanding driving holes. You have to be confident and visualize
the shot. Don't be weak. I'll hit a 10-foot gap much better if I throw fairly
hard. And don't be jerky - be smooth on tight shots. Finally, throw lower
to create less area for the disc to kick into the woods.

Uphill holes are
also demanding. Just picture yourself standing on flat ground and throwing
up a tree. Discs are more stable if you're throwing up a hill, so the
higher you throw it, the more you have to turn it over.

Water. Assess the
situation and try to play away from trouble. You want your shot to enter
the putting area moving away from the water.

PRACTICE
One thing I do before I start a practice round is throw each type of shot
repetitively: flat shots, hyzer shots, and turnover shots. Throw until you're
comfortable with them and practice more on the shots you're having trouble
with.

Another good practice
tip is going out to an open field and throwing distance with someone close
to your ability. Get four or five discs and just heave at will. It's a
good way to throw a bunch of discs in a short period of time without having
to chase after them. This type of practice will inspire you to throw farther
than your partner. Back him up! It also gives you a chance to learn how
to throw a disc in a wide open situation.